Alaska PAWS's Digital Newsroom

If you've ever adopted a pet, visited a veterinarian, volunteered for a rescue, purchased supplies from a local pet store, or donated to an animal shelter, you've already been part of Alaska's animal welfare community. What many people don't realize is that there isn't one organization responsible for helping Alaska's pets.

Animal welfare has never been a competition. At least, it shouldn't be. Every organization has strengths. Every organization has limitations. The healthiest communities recognize both. No one organization can do everything. Some organizations specialize in foster care. Others provide shelter. Some focus on wildlife. Others provide veterinary medicine. Some excel at education. Others organize volunteers. None of those roles is more important than another. They're simply differ

One of the biggest misconceptions in animal welfare is that veterinary medicine and rescue are separate worlds. They're not. They are two sides of the same mission. Rescue gives animals another chance. Veterinary care helps ensure that chance becomes a healthy life. Rescue paired with veterinary care is what actually saves animal lives. Every animal deserves medical care. Every day, veterinarians diagnose illness. Treat painful dental disease. Repair broken bones. Perform li

Whether you're adopting a pet, donating to a rescue, volunteering your time, or seeking help for an animal in need, you're placing an incredible amount of trust in another organization. Most people naturally ask: "Do they have cute animals?" "Are they nearby?" "Do they have good reviews?" Those are reasonable questions. But they aren't the most important ones. The organizations making the greatest difference often have something less visible in common: they have systems that

Did you know you can help animals in need while doing your everyday shopping or by donating an old vehicle? At Alaska SPCA, we're making it easier than ever to support our mission. Read on to discover simple ways you can make a big difference, often at no extra cost to you! Turn Groceries into Good with Fred Meyer Community Rewards Imagine every trip to the grocery store contributing directly to the welfare of animals. With the Fred Meyer Community Rewards Program, that's exa

Our foster families are the quiet heroes behind our lifesaving work. When our shelter reaches its limits, they step forward — opening their homes, their time, and their hearts to animals who need more than we can provide within our walls. In December, that support meant everything. Our Adoption Center team rescued more than six cats from a hoarding situation, including a mama cat and her newborn kittens who were only days old. These fragile lives needed constant care, warmth,

By traveling to underserved and rural areas, Alaska SPCA makes spay/neuter services accessible to pet owners who face geographic, financial, or logistical barriers to care. For families on tight budgets or living far from veterinary providers, our mobile clinics are more than a convenience—they’re a lifeline. Volunteers checking on recovering patients. Rural mobile outreaches carry the highest cost for Alaska SPCA , but lack of access to affordable and compassionate care is

Adapting to the needs of our community is at the core of Alaska SPCA’s mission. Executive director, Kelly Donnelly, wrote about the transition from privilege to partnership within the animal welfare field recently , and it serves as both a retrospective and a roadmap. We can see within Alaska SPCA’s own 70-year history, a shift to be more responsive, more intentional, and more impactful in caring for the animals in our local communities and those across Alaska. And our

Alaska SPCA has been a part of Alaskan Communities for over 50 years. Throughout that time, our purpose has remained the same: promoting animal welfare and providing for the pets and families within our tight-knit community. Journey through time with us in these four articles and learn about how we started, changed, and are continuing to grow to provide and support our Alaskan community. From Privilege to Partnership: The Evolution of Animal Welfare in Alaska, 1955–2025

New waves of thinking about animal welfare occurred across the country and in Alaska from the late 1960s and early 1970s, all the way through early 2000s. Despite misguided and unintentional thoughts around animal welfare occurring throughout the nation, Alaska SPCA continued to stay true to its mission: providing for people and pets in need regardless of circumstances. 1970s–1980s: Prevention, Not Punishment The 1970s marked a shift in animal welfare thinking, as the firs